The state is experiencing its first measles outbreak since 2019 in Montcalm County, where three individuals have contracted the virus. An outbreak is defined as three or more connected cases.
Michigan health officials released minimal information on April 17 about these particular cases, which are connected to a Montcalm County resident who had recently traveled out of state.
“The outbreak in Montcalm County was initially linked to a large, ongoing outbreak in Ontario, Canada,” according to a statement from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) released Thursday.
“At this time, there are no new public exposure sites to report in Michigan. The cases reported in Montcalm County are not related to any of the other confirmed cases reported in other Michigan counties. To protect the privacy of the individuals associated with this outbreak, additional details about these cases will not be shared.”
The Mid-Michigan District Health Department (which includes Montcalm County) had initially alerted local health care providers about the outbreak earlier this week, but not released a public statement, said spokesperson Brady Guilbault. Asked if more cases are expected, Guilbault said, “We’re not sure. We’re doing everything we can to protect our residents.”
But public health officials wouldn’t clarify how it’s possible that there aren’t further exposure sites to report in Montcalm County, if multiple individuals are now infected with the virus.
“The state is providing consultation and coordination, as well as connecting local health departments to contracted vendors as needed,” MDHHS spokesperson Laina Stebbins said via email Thursday.
The state has a list of “active monitoring sites,” defined as “jurisdictions or locations where cases recently visited.”
Currently, only Kent, Ingham and Wayne counties have active monitoring sites.
Counties with “no active monitoring sites” are those “with no ongoing symptom monitoring, either because potentially exposed persons finished their symptom monitoring, or the jurisdiction has no recent history of exposure.”
This brings Michigan’s current total of measles cases to seven so far this year, including a recent case involving a one-year-old child in Ingham County.
Health officials are urging anyone who hasn’t been vaccinated to get their measles vaccine. Typically, kids get their first dose of the vaccine between 12-15 months, and their second dose between 4-6 years old.
Statewide, about 80% of Michigan kids between the ages of 19-35 months have received their first dose of the measles vaccine, and 86% of kids 13-17 have received two doses, according to the most recent state data.
It’s harder to know how many adults are fully vaccinated for measles, Stebbins said. “We don't have good MMR coverage estimates for adults because many of them were vaccinated prior to MCIR [the Michigan Care Improvement Registry] existing, and reporting immunizations for adults is not mandatory,” she said.
